1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for dispensing a product, for example, a fluid product, in the form of a spray. In one example, the device could be a miniature device configured to dispense a spray of one or more cosmetic products and/or care products, for example, a product comprising at least one substance for imparting a scent.
2. Description of the Related Art
Examples of some dispensers are generally described in the following patent applications: FR-A-2 778 639, EP-A-0 761 314, and FR-A-2 443 980; and in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,897,005, and 3,412,907. These devices generally suffer from at least one principal drawback, such as, for example, cost of manufacture, difficulty to use, or inability to generate a quality spray.
For example, for dispensers that contain samples of products that are generally not intended for sale, it is sometimes desired to keep the cost of manufacture as low as possible. In such dispensers, it may be important for the devices to include parts which can be produced easily by mass production and which can be assembled in a simple manner. Furthermore, it is sometimes desired for dispensers to be capable of generating a spray possessing good quality and consistent characteristics. It may also be desired for dispensers to generate a relatively gentle spray for a certain duration, so that the spray may possess characteristics similar to the spray of an aerosol-type spray.
One solution for producing dispensers at a lower cost might include producing a reservoir in the form of a dosing bottle, for example, a dosing bottle of the type sometimes used for dispensing some physiological serums, eye ointments, and/or makeup removing products. Such a dosing bottle may be formed in a single piece, for example, with a spray orifice which may be opened by pulling off an endpiece (e.g., by twisting the endpiece off about the axis of the spray orifice). Such a dispenser may be filled via an open bottom in the reservoir. The open bottom may then be sealed, for example, by welding in a manner similar to welding the end of a tube.
Such a solution may, however, suffer-from two major drawbacks. A first drawback may arise from the fact that upon opening, the spray orifice resulting from pulling-off the endpiece (e.g., by twisting) may have an imprecise shape and size. This may result in the spray characteristic varying greatly from one device to another when compressible walls of the reservoir are pressed to initiate spraying. In some instances, the cross-section of the orifice may be such that it is not possible to generate a spray. In such instances, the product may be able to flow out of the dispensing orifice only in the form of droplets of a greater or lesser size, or in the form of a continuous stream, rather than in the form of a spray.
A second drawback may be found, for example, in the welding operation. For example, in a dispenser containing a highly volatile product such as a scent, there is a risk that the product will evaporate when subjected to the heat associated with a welding process. The product may even deteriorate or ignite.
Examples of dispensers that attempt other solutions are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,571,504, 2,642,313, and 2,728,981; and in British patent document Nos. 680 815 and 263 699. These devices include a container having a squeezable wall containing a liquid product for being expelled via a conduit through an outlet. In these devices, deformation of the squeezable wall is substantially linear (i.e., the reduction in the internal volume of the container varies in a substantially proportional manner to the pressure exerted on the squeezable wall to deform the container). As a result, the user may initiate deformation of the squeezable wall by exerting only a relatively light pressure on the wall, which may result in only slightly compressing the air in the container. This may provide energy to the air that is insufficient to drive a portion of the product into a conduit. As a result of only slightly compressing the air in the container, a small portion of air may have a tendency to escape from the container without any of the product, or at least an insufficient amount of the product, being sprayed.
One subject of the invention relates to a dispenser, for example, a spray device, which may fully or partly obviate one or more drawbacks associated with the related art. Another subject of the invention relates a device which may be easy to mass-produce in a cost-effective manner. Another subject of the invention concerns a device for dispensing which may render it possible to generate a spray of satisfactory quality which may be consistently reproducible from one device to another. A further subject of the invention pertains to a device that may be capable of generating spray for a certain duration, and that may be capable of obtaining a relatively gentle spray. These subjects are optional and exemplary. Other subjects might also be possible.